BRANDON Miller scored 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds as Charlotte Hornets defeated Portland Trail Blazers, 109-93, in the 2025-26 NBA Regular Season on Saturday night (Sunday in the Philippines) in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Miller knocked down six 3-pointers to lead Charlotte’s perimeter attack. The Hornets shot 16-for-42 from beyond the arc after combining for 72 3-pointers over their previous three games, matching the NBA record for most in a three-game span.
Coby White contributed 20 points off the bench, while LaMelo Ball added 15 points and eight assists. Moussa Diabate recorded a double-double with 13 points and 11 rebounds as Charlotte grabbed the fourth straight win and improved to 30-31.
Portland struggled from long range early, missing all 10 of its 3-point attempts in the first quarter as Charlotte built a 29-17 lead. Miller caught fire in the second period, hitting four 3-pointers to help the Hornets take a 51-43 advantage into halftime.
The Trail Blazers trimmed the deficit to 74-67 at the end of the third quarter but faltered again from deep in the fourth, allowing the Hornets to pull away from them for good.
Jrue Holiday paced Portland with 25 points and Jerami Grant finished with 21. The Trail Blazers played without All-Star Deni Avdija for the third consecutive game due to a back injury.
In Miami, Bam Adebayo had 24 points and 11 rebounds, Pelle Larsson scored 10 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter and the Heat beat Houston Rockets 115-105.
Tyler Herro scored 18, Jaime Jaquez Jr. added 14 and Kel’el Ware had a 13-point, 15-rebound game for the Heat. Andrew Wiggins — who needed eight stitches to close a laceration inside his mouth — had 12 points for Miami.
Both teams had double-digit leads early; the Rockets ran out to a quick 14-4 edge, the Heat answered with a 37-14 run to take a 41-28 lead. And then things settled down, with the sides staying relatively close the rest of the way.
Kevin Durant finished with 32 points, eight assists and six rebounds for the Rockets, who got 20 points from Amen Thompson and 14 from Reed Sheppard./PN
